From USF to UEL: Inside Tampa Bay Wave's Growing Internship Pipeline
Tampa Bay Wave’s internship pipeline started close to home, with students from USF. This year it reached across the Atlantic, to the University of East London. Same pipeline, same results, just longer travel time.
UEL’s summer interns wrapped up their internships and headed home to East London at the end of July. This month, Florida students are heading back to school for the Fall.
Since 2025, Tampa Bay Wave and the University of East London (UEL) have placed more than 45 students in internships with Tampa Bay startups. This summer, 12 UEL students spent a month working inside 10 Tampa Bay Wave portfolio companies. It is the largest in-person cohort the partnership has run to date.
Ecosystems don’t grow from funding alone. They grow when people show up and do the work. Founders build. Interns learn. Everyone helps everyone else get further.
Proof the Pipeline Works
Prat Reddy is proof.
She joined Tampa Bay Wave as an intern through the University of South Florida. She was looking for a place to learn and contribute. Today she’s Manager of CORE & Community Growth helping build the same kinds of opportunities that gave her a start.
“My internship at Tampa Bay Wave gave me the opportunity to do more than gain experience,” said Reddy. “It gave me the chance to build relationships, contribute to the Tampa startup ecosystem, and see where I could make an impact. Having worked with startups overseas, I came in with experience, but this internship helped me understand how I could use that experience to build something meaningful in Tampa. Today, as Manager of CORE & Community Growth, I’m proud to be part of the same ecosystem where I got my start. Looking back, that opportunity shaped my path in ways I couldn’t have expected.”
Tampa Bay Wave has partnered with USF, FSU, UF, and St. Petersburg College (SPC) on internships for years. Each partnership brings new students into the ecosystem, giving them the chance to gain experience, build relationships and see what it takes to work inside a growing company. In Prat’s case, the internship became something more: a career in the ecosystem itself. The UEL partnership, which began in 2025, is the newest chapter of that same pipeline. It started locally, with schools right here in Florida. Now it spans an ocean. That is the innovation arc: from USF to UEL, one pipeline, the same result.
From East London to Tampa Bay
This summer, 12 UEL students worked alongside startup teams at Threatmate, Stello AI, SkyTL, Sensfix, Seagate, Maya AI, Cyskor, Surf, PikmyKid and Tampa Bay Wave.
No classroom projects. No sitting on the sidelines. These students did real work at real startup speed. They got a firsthand look at why founders choose to build here.
“This summer, I had the opportunity to work at Stello AI, gaining hands-on experience and learning what it’s really like to work inside a startup,” said Japneet Kaur, a UEL student. “What surprised me most was how much I learned from every conversation, challenge, and connection along the way. I came to Tampa hoping to learn about startups, but left with new perspectives, meaningful connections, friendships, and an experience I’ll always be grateful for.”
The in-person cohort also builds on a growing virtual internship track between UEL and Tampa Bay Wave. Same partnership. More ways to connect. And whether students are working from East London or Tampa Bay, the goal remains the same: create relationships that last beyond an internship.
Paul Marshall of the University of East London sees the partnership as an important bridge between students and the Tampa Bay startup ecosystem.
“The first year of the UEL-Wave cross-border internships program has been a resounding success, with nearly 50 students at the graduate and undergraduate level gaining exposure to the tremendous companies in the Tampa Bay Wave network,” said Marshall. “All of us at UEL are excited for all that has been done and all things ahead with the partnership between our organizations.”
Why It Matters
This partnership is about people. It gives founders a fresh perspective. It gives students real-world experience they can’t get in a lecture hall. And it keeps Tampa Bay open to talent from anywhere in the world. Good ideas don’t check a passport.
As Linda Olson, CEO and Founder of Tampa Bay Wave, has put it: Tampa Bay isn’t just a regional tech story anymore. It’s becoming a destination.
What’s Next
With upcoming cohorts for FinTech and HealthTech coming up before the end of the year, the Wave anticipates many more interns to be placed with our portfolio and partners in the near and far term. In fact, next year the goal for internships will be to place 100, which is quite ambitious but a challenge worth pursuing.
Success here was never about the headcount. It’s the connections. Founders gain perspective. Students gain experience. Tampa Bay gains another thread tying it to the global innovation economy.
Sometimes ecosystem building starts with a major investment. Sometimes it starts with a student asking for a chance to contribute. And sometimes that student stays to lead.
To learn more about the program, contact Prat Reddy at ppreddy@tampabaywave.org.
FAQ
What is the Tampa Bay Wave–University of East London partnership? Since 2025, Tampa Bay Wave and the University of East London have run a virtual and in-person internship program placing UEL students inside Tampa Bay startups.
How many students have participated? More than 45 students have completed internships through the program as of summer 2026. That includes a 2026 summer cohort of 12 students placed across 10 Tampa Bay Wave portfolio companies.
Which companies hosted interns in summer 2026? Threatmate, Stello AI, SkyTl, Sensfix, Seagate, Maya AI, Cyskor, Surf, PikmyKid and Tampa Bay Wave.
Who leads the program at Tampa Bay Wave? Prat Reddy, Manager of CORE & Community Growth. She’s a former Tampa Bay Wave intern herself, through the University of South Florida.
Does Tampa Bay Wave partner with other universities for internships? Yes. Tampa Bay Wave runs internship partnerships with USF, FSU, UF, St. Petersburg College, and UEL.
How can a founder or student get involved? For founders and partners and students who want to be more involved, outreach directly to Wave is encouraged!